dilemma, decision, pot sweetening, HELP!

Just before Easter, Eddie's college options became slightly more interesting.  Then, gut wrenching.  Followed by total confusion and uncertainty.  Brutal.

A while back I may have mentioned that Ed was applying for an amazing scholarship.  The full-ride variety.  We found out just before Christmas that he did not get it.  That was rough.  Really rough.  He had received lots and lots of feedback that he was a strong candidate.

Well, there is a financial-need component to that scholarship.  The financial info that the committee requested included two years worth of documents.  During one of the years they examined, Coach's company was sold.  He is a partner.  Can you say financial windfall?  Well, it was a great thing.  But this 'great thing' ended up making us look financially stable - like 'rolling-in-dough' stable.

What's that they say about timing?  That it is everything?  Um, yeah.  So true.

Ed has narrowed his options down considerably over the last several months  He ended up being very impressed during a direct admit day visit at 'X' College -its business school is ranked in the top 10 in the nation.  X also happened to be one of the schools that he could have attended for free if he received the full ride scholarship.

Ed and his cousin, who is a freshman at X, checking
 out a lecture hall while we toured back in Feb.

He is able to apply for the same full-ride scholarship again next year- when our financial windfall year will not be visible to the full-ride committee.  If awarded, the scholarship would cover his remaining three years of school.  Well, that would be amazing.  Right?

He was pretty confident in his leaning-towards-X plan, BUT then off-the-grid school, where Coach happened to go, popped up on the radar.  Ed had visited Grid, and he liked it a lot.  Grid started sweetening the pot (not endorsing legalized pot or anything, silly).  They chopped quite a bit off of his tuition.  That made life interesting.

On Holy Thursday, Ed texted me from school.  Grid nominated him for a leadership scholarship.  He wanted to know if he should just email back and say, 'Thanks, but I am going to another school (X).'  I suggested he check out what the scholarship equated to.

By the by:  Because Coach attended Grid, he would love it if Ed goes there.  Coach is being a grown up and not applying pressure.  For reals.  So, that's good.  But Ed is not stupid, he knows Coach would be thrilled if he opted to commit to Grid.  I wondered if Ed was trying to dismiss the Grid scholarship before Coach caught wind of it.

Is this complicated enough?  Oh, just wait.